Woolworth Building

Cass Gilbert
1911-13

This famous skyscraper, 792 feet tall, was commissioned by Frank W. Woolworth, the owner of the five and dime chain. It has a "U"-shaped plan with a 29-story mass at the bottom and with a 30-story square tower rising from the center of the front. The whole is sheathed with cream-colored terra cotta. Details in the entrance, the setbacks, and top borrow from Gothic architecture. See also the Chicago Tribune Tower for a later Gothic revival skyscraper.

The front facade and "Gothic" details of the entrance

The shaft, setback, and top

The building was nick-named early the "Cathedral of Commerce," a cognomen clearly justified by the interior lobby with vaulted mosaic-covered ceilings and a profusion of Neo-Gothic details.